The Tennessee Small Business Development Center at Middle Tennessee State University is offering a seminar, “Social Media Marketing: The Smart Way” to help local business owners decide what media components work for them.

Led by Jen Dangelo, director of the Online Counseling and Training Center, the seminar will address how to market a business through social networks such as YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and Google+, and it will introduce entrepreneurs to tools and tricks that will help make it all manageable.

This two hour seminar will offer advise on building a list of valuable social networking sites, exploring scheduling tools and how to use them, and learning how various mediums can complement an existing business website, as well as provide guidance on how to create an online presence.

Held from 2:30 p.m. until 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 2, this seminar will take place at the Rutherford County Chamber of Commerce, located at 3050 Medical Center Parkway in Murfreesboro.

Reservations are required and available on-line at www.tsbdc.org or by calling 615-898-2745.

Master gardeners offering workshop

A slew of exciting events await local residents this month.

The Master Gardeners of Rutherford County is offering a free workshop on winter storage of fruits and vegetables at the Rutherford County Farmers’ Market this Friday, Oct. 5, at 9:30 am.

This informal workshop, "Root Cellaring Basics," is being presented by Mark Cull and Reba Hinkle. The program is free and open to the public, and reservations are not required.

“Imagine having fresh, local produce stored in your home and ready for your enjoyment all winter without canning or freezing,” a press release states. “Many varieties of fruits and vegetables can easily be stored in your home, including winter squash, potatoes, sweet potatoes, onions, carrots, beets, cabbage, and apples-even if you don’t actually have a root cellar. You simply have to know what can be stored and how it’s done.”

Attend the event to learn just how easy it is to store produce in your home over the winter.

This is the final workshop offered by the Master Gardeners of Rutherford County as part of a monthly First Fridays at the market series offered from June through October.

For more information, visit www.mastergardeners-rc.org or call the Rutherford County Agricultural Extension Office at 615-898-7710.

Airlines add flights to Nashville airport

Three major airlines have announced additional flights to Nashville International Airport, extending a strong summer of increased air service with new routes to Boston, Cleveland and Los Angeles.

The announcements coincided with another positive passenger report, released Thursday during the Board of Commissioners meeting.

The Nashville airport has experienced 25 consecutive months of passenger growth, comparing monthly totals to the same month in the previous year. Last month was the best August on record since the days of the American Airlines hub.

“BNA was the fourth fastest growing among the top 75 airports in North America last year, and our growth continues,” President Rob Wigington said. “New air service is one of our top priorities, and the new flights recognize Nashville’s thriving business and visitor markets.”

This new flight is in addition to the one daily nonstop launched by Southwest in August. Previously, Boston had been the largest market with no nonstop service from Nashville. The flights will leave at 11:50 a.m. and 9 p.m. from BNA, and 10:05 a.m. and 2:05 p.m. from Logan.

This marks the fourth time in the past four months that Southwest has announced an expansion of its air service to Nashville, including two new daily nonstop flights each to New York LaGuardia and Newark International Airport, both of which begin next year.

United Airlines announced two new daily nonstop flights to Nashville from its Cleveland hub, beginning Wednesday, Dec. 19.

The new flights will depart from Nashville at 11:45 a.m. and 5:45 p.m., and the return flights from Hopkins International Airport are at 8:55 a.m. and 5 p.m. United thus filled a gap in its air service, as Nashville had the most travelers of any city not served by its Cleveland hub.

Nashville-to-Cleveland passengers may now choose from two carriers and six flights. Southwest also offers four daily nonstop flights to Hopkins International.

In April, American Airlines announced a new seasonal daily flight to Los Angeles International Airport.

Based on passenger response, American Airlines has decided to offer this flight throughout the year. It now has two daily flights connecting Nashville and Los Angeles, leaving at 7:10 a.m. and 6:10 p.m.